An evolution on the wings of a Bird

Steven listened to Vali alongside her pokemon as she recounted the chamber of secrets. At first, the flow of her words was stilted and dull as if there was no luster to her memories of that time. Then, the flow of her words turned smooth and her eyes gained a glazed look that told him she was remembering what had happened as she spoke. He could almost envision the snake as she described it. Dark green almost black scales, a mouth large enough to swallow a Snorlax whole, fangs as long as she was tall, and a body as long as a bullet train if not longer and rounder. He could almost see the phoenix she described within his mind. A body like a Swanna only smaller, feathers stained various shades of red and golds, molten gold orbs that burned with the bird's inner fire, sharp talons the color of varnished gold, and a voice far sweeter than any candy and more soothing than an Alteria's hum. He could almost see Vali running from the snake after Fawkes blinded it. He pressed a hand to his heart as she described plunging the sword into the snake's mouth and feeling sorry for the beast's lackluster life. He stared at Vali in horror as she described what it felt like with basilisk venom within her veins and her acceptance of the death that had been before her. He thanked Fawkes the phoenix for saving Vali with his magical tears. By the end of the story, Steven felt worn out.

Vali paused for a moment before speaking breaking the spell that had fallen over them all, "After that, Ginny, Fawkes, and I gathered up Ron plus Lockhart before heading back up the tunnel. That's it."

Steven said the only thing he could at that moment, "That school of yours is almost as dangerous as being a pokemon trainer."

Vali let out a laugh which made her eyes look far less shadowed and her face less pale. Steven found himself smiling as he listened to her laugh and he found himself wishing to hear more. Vali's laughter didn't sound like bells, but it was soft and nice to listen to. When she finished laughing, she smiled at him, "Sorry, I didn't mean to laugh, but that's the first time I've ever heard someone say that and the fact its so true..."

"I can somewhat understand, but I hope that you tell me more about that school of yours," Steven said earning a nod from Vali, "For now, I think it's about time we get some lunch,"

"That's probably a good idea," Vali put the mythology book away.

Steven stood up as he said, "What do you want to do after lunch?"

"Maybe go check out the bay and see if any of the sailors wouldn't mind battling. Pidgey's so close to evolving and I'd like her to evolve before the gym battle to give her that extra boost. I'd also like to give her more time to get used to her new body before we end up traveling," Vali stood up while picking up Sandshrew.

It was a smart plan and one he didn't mind helping her with. They could also take some time to look over how to train their Sandshrew to find certain stones. He couldn't wait to see just how many stones he could have his Sandshrew learn to find. The prospect of being able to find evolutionary stones easier made him more than a little eager to go searching. He wouldn't bring this information to his father's attention until he'd managed to train his Sandshrew. He knew that Vali hoped to teach her Sandshrew to find fire stones though what other stones she planned on teaching Sandshrew to find were up in the air. He glanced at Sandshrew and smiled slightly at the contented expression on her face. Sandshrew was like Vali in a way though the ground-type was far more innocent than Vali. Perhaps it was fate that brought Sandshrew to Vali, he wasn't too sure though he thought that the black haired witch was definitely the right trainer for the ground-type.

"Pidgey, dodge it and use Gust!" Vali shouted as the opposing trainer had their Wingull use Water Gun.

Thankfully, Pidgey had trained with Squirtle and knew how to dodge Water Guns. Pidgey let out a shrill trill as she banked to the left before flapping her wings quickly as they gained a transparent glow to them. A fierce wind was kicked up and slammed into the Wingull. While it may not cause as much damage as it usually would had Wingull not been a dual Flying/Water-type, it still caused enough damage to make Wingull cry out and fly back a bit. Wingull let out a fierce crying and dove forward as its trainer called out, "Wing Attack and Supersonic, Wingull. Take out that Pidgey!"

"Pidgey dodge as best you can! Use Quick Attack to boost your speed and hit it with Steel Wing if it gets too close!" Vali inwardly cursed at the fact the Wingull knew Supersonic.

It was a move she disliked both because of how it confused pokemon and because of how shrill it sounded. Oh, it was a viable move that she would use if on of her pokemon ever learned the move, but she didn't like it. Thankfully it wasn't all that accurate which meant that Pidgey just needed to avoid getting hit by it. Pidgey quickly followed her orders as Wingull flew towards the tiny bird. Pidgey movements blurred as she utilized Quick Attack and began to fly circles around the dual-type attempting to hit her. Wingull screeched out its Supersonic and Pidgey managed to move behind the other pokemon before it could get close. With glowing wings, Pidgey nailed the Wingull in the back with a Steel Wing causing Wingull's Supersonic to cut off in a choked squawk as the bird began to fall towards the ground. However, Wingull managed to pull itself up before it hit the ground though it flew fairly close the ground looking more than a little bruised. Wingull's trained winced at the sight of his pokemon, "Wingull, can you continue?"

Wingull dipped its beak letting out a proud cry as it glared at Pidgey. Wingull was a fighter and wouldn't stop until it was down for the count. Vali marveled at the fighting spirit that Wingull showed and felt her heart beat speed up a little. Flying-types were proud, not as proud as Fire-types, but they were still very proud beings. They didn't bow down easily and it took a special hand to bring out the best in them. As docile as they were, the Pidgey line wouldn't bow down to anyone that didn't prove themselves to be a competent trainer and have been known to disappear if the trainer that caught them proved to be far too weak. She wondered if Wingull were the same as the two flying-types drew even and Wingull let out a war cry that Pidgey echoed. Clenching her hand, she called out, "Pidgey, use Sand attack into Gust! Quick Attack if you need to dodge for whatever reason and Steel Wing if it gets too close. You can do this!"

Pidgey let out a cry of acknowledgement before starting her attack. Kicking up a cloud of dirt with Sand Attack, the tiny bird pokemon began to flap her wings quickly. The fierce wind of Gust sent the dirt cloud created by the Sand Attack towards Wingull at a swift pace. Wingull managed to dodge the main part of the attack, but got hit by the crosswinds created by Gust and found itself pelted with a few of the rocks that ended up in the cloud of dirt. Wingull let out a sharp cry of pain, but managed to shake it off as it shot a Water Gun towards Pidgey. Pidgey dodged it before rushing forward with Quick Attack and Steel Wing sending the quickly tiring Wingull towards the ground. Wingull attempted to get up and managed it for a moment before it fell to its side in a dead faint. Wingull's trainer returned the bird as Pidgey flew towards Vali. Vali beamed at Pidgey, "Good job, Pidgey! I knew you could win that battle."

Pidgey let out a cry of victory before being enveloped in a blinding white glow. Everyone on the section of the pier they were currently standing on stopped for a few moments to watch the evolution with no small sense of awe. While Pidgey were common pokemon, evolution was always a sight of awe for everyone. It was an event celebrated not only by trainer and pokemon alike, but by those seeing it. To see a pokemon evolve into something more powerful, it was a mark of growth that no one could ignore. When the glow faded, Pidgey was gone and Pidgeotto stood in her place.

Pidgeotto was larger than Pidgey by two feet at least and larger in body too. Pidgeotto's wing span was larger due to the bird's muscles becoming larger in order to support the bird in flight. Pidgeotto's claws and beak were larger than Pidgey's to allow the bird to latch onto their prey easier. The bird pokemon now had a long stream of bright red feathers coming from their forehead that were supposed to help the bird read the wings better. Pidgeotto had more feathers than Pidgey that were thicker and more durable to allow for better protection from the elements as the bird tended to gravitate to plains and mountains after their evolution. Pidgeotto's bones were thicker than a Pidgey though could still be broken if enough force was applied. They had a thicker layer of fat that protected not only their vital organs, but the added flight organs that allowed the bird pokemon to fly at higher altitudes. Pidgeotto had longer tail feathers that would assist in reading the winds and allow for better balance in the air. Pidgeotto let out a cry prompting Vali to shake her head and congratulate her pokemon on evolving as Balto barked and Wingull's trainer breathed out, "That's one beautiful lady."

"Pidgeotto!" Vali called moving towards her newly evolved pokemon slowly as Pidgeotto focused on her, "You look absolutely wonderful, Girl,"

Vali made sure to keep their eyes locked and her breathing even. After evolution, flying-types had a period of time where any form of loyalty they felt towards their trainer fell into the background. It was during this time that the trainer needed to lock eyes with their flying-type and have a small stare down. The trainer couldn't look away at all or blink otherwise the flying-type would attack. It reminded her of Hippogriffs only without the whole bowing thing. Pidgeotto stared at her for awhile before breaking the staring contest to bow her head. Walking forward with a smile, Vali reached out and rubbed the bird pokemon's breast feathers earning a coo.

Vali turned her head towards the Wingull trainer as he walked over, "That was a very nice battle, Vali."

"That it was, Charles," Vali replied as Pidgeotto cuddled into her side and rubbed her cheek against Vali's, "Thank you for your help in giving Pidgey that final push to evolve,"

"It's no trouble, but I hope you know that Wingull will be wishing for a rematch at some point," Charles laughed with a grin as he adjusted his sailor hat.

"I think Pidgeotto and I would like that though it will have to wait until after she's adjusted to her new body," Vali turned and pressed a kiss to Pidgeotto's cheek.

"Of course," Charles laughed and handed over the nice 250 poke-dollars she'd won.

With that, they said their goodbyes and Vali found herself being congratulated on the win. A few of the other sailors and pier workers offered to battle her. She told them that she would be happy to battle them later once she got Pidgeotto checked out before heading over to where Steven was lowering her camera. She returned Pidgeotto for now knowing that the bird pokemon could use the rest and not wanting to stress out the newly evolved pokemon. Steven handed her the camera as she said, "That last battle was a bit rough especially since Pidgey had already battled four other pokemon."

"In the end, she managed to pull through and I got some nice pictures for you to send home," Steven said earning a thankful smile, "I'm going to be getting back Skarmory as Mawile is getting a bit antsy. She'll be a big help in getting Pidgeotto used to her new body,"

"I'll have to see if Pidgeotto wants a name now," Vali mused as they headed back to the pokemon center, "I'll also need to check if Pikachu wants one or not,"

"Are you going to wait a little while longer before asking Sandshrew if she wants a name?" Steven asked as they started passing through the open air market.

Vali hummed lightly as she thought about it before saying, "I'll wait for a little bit longer. I'm still coming up a bit blank on what names I could call her."

As it turned out, Pidgeotto was actually almost five inches larger than was common for her species and her wing span matched that. Considering the fact that she'd been malnourished when Vali had caught her, it showed just how much better off she'd been in Vali's care. Nurse Joy had recommend some exercises that would not only help Pidgeotto get used to her new body, but also prepare her for when she evolved into a Pidgeot and carry Vali. Vali would need to get a saddle for Pidgeotto once she evolved and one for Smaug as well. Considering the fact that she planned to raise a Ponyta, she would need to consider getting one for it as well. Well technically, she didn't actually need the saddles. It just made riding her pokemon a lot more comfortable. And if she desperately needed one, she could buy some manuals and make one herself.

Vali mentally grimaced at that thought. While making her own saddle would likely be cheaper, it wasn't something that would be a good idea especially since she'd never actually seen one before. None of the pokemon at the ranch ever had a saddle and Professor oak didn't have any at the lab. Why would he need one when he could use Alakazam to teleport him places? She would need to research various saddle companies and find a reasonably priced one that had a good reputation. Thankfully, it would be months before she actually needed a saddle. Taking out her pokedex, she made a note to start researching saddles.

Vali led Pidgeotto outside along with Smaug, "You two need to work on getting used to your bodies. Pidgeotto, I want you to get used to how big your body is. No flying until you get used to stretching out your wings fully and get used to how big they are. Once done, I want you to practice taking off and landing. Since you've just evolved, your center of gravity will be off which will make landings hard for you," Pidgeotto nodded slowly, "I also want you to use this time to decide if you want a nickname or not," Pidgeotto nodded again before hopping off to a corner where she could do as Vali asked, "Smaug," He looked at her curiously, "You've gotten somewhat used to walking around. I want you to try fast walking and running. If you feel like you're about to fall, I want you to stop then keep walking. Once you're able to run, I'll be testing to see what your limits are."

Smaug nodded and went off to do as she asked. Vali released Balto and Pikachu before giving them their own marching orders. Balto would be running sprints and pushing himself to become faster. Pikachu would be doing the same. Both Pikachu and Growlithe were speed based pokemon with Arcanine being hailed as one of the fastest pokemon alive, she needed to capitalize on that while also making them stronger. Right now, she wanted to push them to their limits and try to get past those limits. Vali would be running alongside them after getting stretched and warming up her body. Just because they were in a city, it didn't mean they could cut back on their training.

About thirty minutes into the session, Steven joined them and Vali felt that it would be alright to have Sandshrew out. Sandshrew watched the group of elder pokemon rushing around curiously from her place beside Claydol. Skarmory flew around doing laps keeping pace with the two running trainers. Steven spoke as they ran, "So today is about pushing their bodies to their limits?"

"Smaug and Pidgeotto are working out what their bodies can physically do right now," Vali answered working to keep her swift pace, "Once Smaug can run without tripping, I'll be testing how much more powerful he is and see what his new limits are. Pidgeotto will do the same thing once she gets to flying again. She's going to be practicing taking off and landing once she gets a good grasp on how much bigger she is,"

"Not a bad plan," Steven easily kept pace with her, "Grace stopped by. Our lectures are set for this Saturday. Mine will be first starting at 9 in the morning and ending at noon. The gym's providing lunch for us and your lecture will be at 1. Since it's your first lecture, Grace has set it up so you only need to talk for an hour. If you want to go longer, you can,"

Vali felt a bit of anxiety run through her at those words, but pushed it down, "Alright. Did she say when I'll be battling those three?"

"Sunday around 1 though you'll only have an hour since they have a water show at three and need an hour to get ready," Steven replied causing her mind to wander, "The other times you'll battle them are up to you three and Grace,"

Vali nodded as she sped up a bit, "I honestly don't know where to start a lecture other than saying hello, stating my name, age, and where I'm from."

"Well, you could talk about the things that school didn't prepare you for when going on a journey," Steven suggested as he kept pace with her, "You could have them ask questions and answer them. It's your lecture," Steven glanced at her, "I think there's more to this than not being good a public speaking,"

Vali was glad that her face was already a little flushed from the running. She looked forward as she said, "I'm just anxious when it comes to being around others. It's fine when its just a few people. I can't really explain where it started, but it got a lot worse when I first entered the...When I went shopping for school for the first time and ended up getting mobbed," Vali worked on keeping her breathing even, "School was kind of bad, but I learned how to deal with it. Focusing on school work or Quidditch made it easy to forget. I learned ways to avoid being in crowded places and things like that. When battling, it's easy to focus only on the battle especially when there aren't a lot of people around."

"The League conference is going to be difficult for you," Steven noted with a frown.

"I'm hoping that I'll be able to work up to it," Vali started to feel a bit tired and began to slow down, "I mean, it won't be too hard once I start battling. It's easy to forget everyone around me save for my pokemon, my opponents pokemon, and my opponent," She looked at Steven, "How do you deal with being in front of a crowd of people?"

Steven was quiet for a moment, "I suppose its due to the fact I've been in the spotlight ever since I was a child due to my Dad's company being so big. I've learned how to deal with it. Now days, I recite the properties of various stones until its time for me to speak or battle someone. You just need to find someway to keep your anxieties and stuff at bay."

"I guess it'll be trial and error," Vali slowed to a walk.

"Pretty much," Steven offered her an encouraging smile, "You'll figure it out,"

After training was done and they'd gotten dinner, Vali asked Pidgeotto if she wished for a name. The bird pokemon was still for a few moments before inclining her head. With that in mind, she began to list the various names she'd come up for the Pidgeotto before the bird settled on one. With a smile, she spoke Pidgeotto's new name, "Celina."

Gyms as a whole had to be large due to the fact they acted not only as a place for trainer to get gym badges, but local rally points for the League. The gym trainers and gym leaders also acted as the defenders of the city if something decided to attack. The gyms also acted as research facilities for certain types of pokemon, a shelter for rehabilitating pokemon that the Pokemon centers couldn't care for, and things like that. Each Gym also did things that were unique to the city it guards. In the case of Pewter, the gym acted as a learning facility for those attempting to become guides for the many caves and mountains around Kanto. In the case of Cerulean, the gym was where you became licensed to operate boats, become life guards, or anything else that came with being a water-side city.

Cerulean was larger than Pewter by a good bit and if it weren't for Grace leading them again, Vali would have gotten lost almost immediately after entering the building. Balto was a bit antsy though that mostly had to do with the fact they were walking through and under some tanks filled with water-type pokemon. She found herself pausing when she noticed one of the water types, "That's a Spheal, isn't it?"

Grace paused and looked back at her before nodding as the red haired woman walked over, "Yes. He's one of the pokemon we got from the recent exchange between gyms. He's rather cute, isn't he?"

"He is though he looks a bit unhappy," Vali walked closer to the tank where the Spheal was sitting.

Spheal was staring sightlessly towards the wall. It's black eyes blank which was an rather unusual thing when it came to a pokemon that was generally cheerful. Grace sighed deeply, "Spheal doesn't really like it here. He won't interact with any of the other pokemon and just ignores us. He does eat, but that's about it."

"Maybe he's lonely," Vali murmured looking at Spheal with a soft frown, "Maybe he had a friend wherever you got him from and he misses them. Or maybe he wants to go back home,"

Grace shrugged lightly, "I can't say anything though if he doesn't get better soon, we're going to be sending him back," Grace turned away, "Let's keep going, we're almost to the lecture hall."

Vali frowned at the Spheal one last time before following Grace and Steven.